By Peter Ryan and Jake Niall
Richmond champion Jack Riewoldt will play his final game on Saturday, ending a career that yielded three premierships and helped transform the Tigers.
The 34-year-old told his teammates on Tuesday morning that his career would end just shy of 350 games. He has played 346 games and kicked 786 goals to sit 13th on the all-time goalkickers list with Tiger greats Matthew Richardson (800 goals) – a fellow Tasmanian – and Jack Titus (970 goals) ahead of him.
Jack Riewoldt and Trent Cotchin arm in arm.Credit: AFL Media/Getty Images
“I am ready for the next chapter, and I think the club is ready to regenerate and find a new path forward,” Riewoldt said.
“I never thought my journey would get this far or that I would be a part of anything like what I have been. But I am so thankful for everyone who has played a part.”
Riewoldt will join former skipper and fellow great Trent Cotchin in retirement. Cotchin will also play his final game in front of the Tigers faithful against North Melbourne at the MCG on Saturday, where the pair are expected to receive a huge send-off.
The pair won’t play the following weekend on the road against Port Adelaide.
Riewoldt was leading goalkicker at the Tigers 11 times and won mark of the round seven times as a high-flying forward.
He has been a brilliant spearhead for the Tigers, lifting the club from the depths of the ladder to be the only focal point in their drought-breaking premiership year in 2017.
“It is so important to realise your own story, and while my career has been a long one, it started the same way as everyone that walks into the doors with hope and curiosity and excitement, and I have just been lucky that so many people have invested in me,” he said in a statement released by the club Tuesday morning.
“I will miss everything really, but most of all, it will be that I miss the battle and all that comes with playing for this club.”
He said the drought-breaking 2017 premiership was a highlight of his career.
“Thirty-seven years is a long time not to have success, so to have been a part of a group that helped change Richmond forever and possibly how the game is played on and off the field is something I am extremely proud of,” he said.
Riewoldt won the AFL’s Coleman Medal for most goals in 2010, 2012 and 2018.
He gave joy to long-suffering Tigers fans when he kicked a bag of 10 goals against West Coast in 2010 aged 21 and just 12 games into Damien Hardwick’s coaching stint, before becoming a star in all three flags after enduring three consecutive elimination final losses from 2013-2015.
Recruited from Clarence, Tasmania, he kicked five goals in the 2019 grand final as the Tigers thrashed Greater Western Sydney, and formed a damaging forward set-up alongside Gold Coast recruit Tom Lynch.
Riewoldt matured in front of the fans’ eyes after being pick 13 in the 2006 national draft as he went from a deep forward, who kicked more than 50 goals a season for six consecutive years between 2010-2015, to a more selfless player.
It took Riewoldt some time to accept that shift under Hardwick, but once he got a handle on what was needed, the Tigers improved significantly.
He joined the leadership group and became a key figure in the Tigers’ move to becoming a superpower, with three flags in four seasons between 2017-2020.
In 2023, he has won more admiration for his resilience as he played through injury to once again lead the forward line in the injured Tom Lynch’s absence. He has kicked 31 goals this season.
A press conference will be held about 12.30pm.
More to come
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